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板前 (いたまえ) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

板いた前まえ

い

た

ま

え

JLPTN1›Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

1

Especially a chef of high-end Japanese cuisine, often working in front of the cutting board. Dialectal (Kantō) usage.

See also: 板場 (いたば)

あの店みせの板いた前まえは

、

魚さかな

を

さばく

の

が

とても

上手じょうず

だ

。

The chef at that restaurant is very skilled at filleting fish.

彼かれは有ゆう名めいな料りょう亭ていで板いた前まえとして修しゅ業ぎょうした。

He trained as a chef at a famous traditional Japanese restaurant.

2

chopping board area

Original meaning: the area of a kitchen containing the cutting board. Now rare; the chef sense is dominant.

板いた前まえは、もともと調ちょう理り場ばのまな板いたのある場ば所しょを指さした。
Originally, 板前 referred to the area in a kitchen where the cutting board is located.

Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉が板いた前まえになるfor someone to become a (Japanese cuisine) chef
彼かれは十じゅう年ねんかけて板いた前まえになった。
He spent ten years becoming a chef.
板いた前まえとして働はたらくto work as a chef
彼かの女じょは寿す司し屋やで板いた前まえとして働はたらいている。
She works as a chef at a sushi restaurant.
板いた前まえの腕うでa chef's skill/talent
この店みせは板いた前まえの腕うでがいいと評ひょう判ばんだ。
This restaurant is famous for the chef's skill.

Kanji

板plank, board, plate
前in front, before

Related words

料りょう理り人にん sense 1
料理人 is a general term for any cook, while 板前 specifically means a chef specializing in traditional Japanese cuisine.
調ちょう理り師し sense 1
調理師 refers to a licensed professional cook of any cuisine, whereas 板前 emphasizes skill in Japanese-style cooking, especially at a cutting board.
シェフ sense 1
シェフ usually denotes a Western-style chef (often the head chef of a kitchen), while 板前 specifically refers to a Japanese-cuisine chef.
板いたN2
板 is a colloquial abbreviation of 板前 (chef), typically heard as 板さん in restaurant talk, while 板前 is the standard, complete term.

Don't confuse with

板いた場ば sense 2
板場 primarily means the kitchen or cutting-board area of a restaurant, while 板前 refers to the person who works there as a chef.

Counted with

人にん
counter for people

Built from

板いた+前まえ

Etymology

Compound of 板 (ita, 'board') and 前 (mae, 'front'), literally 'in front of the board', referring to the cutting board area and later the chef who works there.